EMU Grad Alan Hostetler, CPA, ‘Rising Star to Watch’

July 20, 2010Last updated September 17, 2014 by Reprinted with permission from the Virginia Societ

2001 EMU graduate Alan Hostetler, CPA, received one of the ‘Top 5 Under 35’ awards Virginia Society of CPAs.

Alan Hostetler, current CPA and 2001 EMU business grad, was honored in May 2010 as one of the ‘Top 5 Under 35′ by the Virginia Society of CPAs (VSCPA).

The award, new in 2010, recognizes young professionals who show particular promise in professional achievement, VSCPA or local VSCPA chapter accomplishment, community contribution or dedication to the CPA profession.

Hostetler was honored at the 2010 Leaders’ Summit on May 14.

Honing leadership skills

Currently serving as chapter president, Hostetler, who majored in accounting while at EMU, began his first term on the board of his local chapter in 2006. He’s devoted his time and talents to the chapter ever since.

Leading the chapter has presented ample opportunity for Hostetler to fine tune his leadership skills, which have translated to his work at the firm, where he specializes in auditing as well as in business and individual taxation.

Hostetler has nine years of experience in nonprofit auditing and informational return reporting and has been recognized for his outstanding work in the field: he was selected as a Virginia Business Super CPA in both 2006 and 2007.

Job variety within accounting was a draw

Ironically, this top-notch CPA was almost not a CPA at all.

“I started out thinking about going into engineering, but calculus scared me away from that,” Hostetler laughs. “The more I started looking into career planning, the variety of things you could do within the accounting profession and the job availability at the time were really attractive.”

When he’s not working, Hostetler is outdoors. He belongs to a hiking group and leads hikes in the Charlottesville area. He’s also into vegetable gardening, traveling, local music and local activities.

Hostetler’s advice

His advice to other aspiring CPAs? “Study hard. Don’t ever assume that you know enough. Learn from the people around you. Don’t ever pass up opportunities to learn something new.”